Birth of the Demonic Sword

Noah found himself surrounded by scorching flames. His draconic armor had crumbled, and only the layer of dark matter and corrosive smoke covered his body now.

The unstable substance still flowed through his black veins, but Felicia had already shown that her flames could hurt him even in that state. She was strong, stronger than any other solid stage cultivator Noah had ever faced.

Noah didn't hesitate to rely on his strongest asset when he realized how poor his situation was. The reptilian mouth was about to close on his figure, but an intense bloodlust suddenly filled the area and slowed down the attack.

The white sword returned inside the separate space, and a black handle came out of his chest. Noah promptly wielded it with his right hand, and the flames in his surroundings shattered when he waved his blades.

The space bent under the power carried by Noah's sharpness. The scarlet flames disappeared as slashes flew through the sky and slammed on the enemy army.

Felicia didn't expect Noah to be capable of such might. The Rats had described Charle's fight, but they didn't know how to evaluate the cursed sword. Their simple minds couldn't tell the difference between the Demonic Sword and that incredible item.

Even if Felicia had guessed that Noah still hid some trump cards, she didn't expect him to destroy her flames so quickly. It only took him one attack to defeat the spell that had managed to shatter his draconic form.

The army on the other side of the flames was powerless against that offensive. The massive slashes that had flown out of Noah's figure ripped their bodies apart and destroyed their consciousness in an instant.

A hole appeared among the army. Noah's offensive had destroyed the first line of defense and left those areas unprotected. His slashes even carried enough power to slam on the invisible barrier around the pagoda.

A surge of anger filled Felicia's mind. She had failed to protect those valuable troops against an opponent that had already damaged the Crystal City.

She couldn't let her great organization appear so weak. Noah had to die on that day, or the Crystal City would have lost power for nothing.

Noah's skin crumbled as a series of injuries opened on his torso. Blood filled his inscribed robe, but the fiendish armor prevented Felicia from seeing the drawbacks of the cursed sword.

Felicia raised both hands, and flames appeared around her figure. The fire flowed in front of her, and dense fireballs flew toward Noah whenever she snapped her fingers.

Noah deployed his movement technique, but Felicia's offensive was too fast. He initially managed to dodge the attacks, but a fireball soon hit his legs and turned them into a charred mess.

A series of fireballs converged toward Noah after he came out of his movement technique. Felicia wasn't giving him any break, so Noah had to rely on his cursed sword again.

The Demonic Sword melted and covered the cursed sword. A massive horizontal slash came out of the blade and destroyed every fireball flying toward him.

The slash didn't stop and continued to fly toward Felicia's position. The expert couldn't completely block the attack, but dodging would lead to more casualties among her army. She had to make a difficult choice, but she didn't hesitate to listen to her instincts.

Flames amassed behind her figure. The fan reappeared and waved toward the massive slash. Its structure crumbled during the attack and transformed into fiery spears that flew toward Noah's technique.

"Winter flame," Felicia said as the scarlet halo hid her figure.

The black slash and the many fiery spears clashed, but Noah's attack continued to press forward, cutting anything on its path. Yet, the dense fire crashing on its structure consumed part of its power and destabilized its form.

The slash had turned into a sharp trail of dark matter that clashed with Felicia's innate defenses. A scorching aura surrounded her figure and consumed the remaining power contained in Noah's attack.

When one of the shockwaves radiated by a different spot on the battlefield vanquished the smoke accumulated in the area, Noah could see that a large cut had appeared on Felicia's waist. Her complexion had also paled. His attack had managed to hurt her!

"You can't hurt the Crystal City anymore," Felicia said as trails of blood flowed out of her mouth. "I will stop you."

Felicia joined her hands, and the giant reptilian head reappeared. More flames formed around her and fused with her technique to build a fiery body for her creature.

"Spring flame," Felicia said, and the giant reptilian creature released a roar.

The beast resembled a dragon, but it had three pairs of feathered wings that spread fire through the sky. Its head wasn't wholly draconic either. It had a long mouth, and two lines of sharp teeth filled its insides.

Noah's pride exploded when he placed his eyes on that creature. The bloodlust was making his mind unstable, and the sight of that beast managed to trigger his instincts.

Noah felt as if the fiery creature wanted to challenge him for the ownership of the region, and his tainted thoughts didn't allow him to hold back. He raised his blade before the beast even completed its roar, and a massive vertical slash soon came out of its sharp edge.

"Spring flame," Felicia said, and the fan reappeared.

The fiery weapon flew in front of the creature and released dense flames that clashed with the slash. An explosion followed the event, but Noah's attack managed to pierce that technique.

Yet, it had lost too much power. The fiery creature raised its legs and stooped the slash with its bare claws. Its massive head also bit on its sharp edge and shattered the attack before it could even damage Felicia's technique.

Noah ignored that event and launched another slash. Wounds continued to open on his body, but he didn't care. His mind could only focus on one thing in that situation. He had to kill Felicia.

The fiery creature didn't manage to withstand the arrival of the second slash, and Felicia had been too slow. Her injury was starting to affect her, so she couldn't cast another powerful fire attack against that offensive. The slash severed the creature in half, and flames filled the sky after its figure crumbled. Noah's attack even continued flying toward Felicia, but the expert raised her hands again.

"Autumn flame," Felicia said, and all the fire accumulated in the sky condensed to take the shape of dense currents.

The fiery currents flew toward the slash and destroyed it, creating an expanding cloud of dark matter and corrosive smoke. The attacks even converged toward Noah, who felt compelled to use the cursed sword again.

Noah and Felicia appeared to be on par. They were using their best attacks without managing to overcome their opponent. Those watching the scene remained speechless. Noah was actually fending off a solid stage cultivator!

Of course, that outcome didn't satisfy Noah. His bloodlust even enhanced his greed. He wanted to kill his opponent and anyone around her. Being on her same level couldn't make him happy.

Before he could even decide to activate his ability, Noah's cultivation level began to rise. It reached the peak of the liquid stage and barged inside the superior level.

Felicia had no words to describe what was happening in front of her eyes. Her opponent had suddenly transformed into a solid stage expert.